Iranian murderer pardoned while on gallows

AN Iranian man condemned to the gallows for murdering a policeman has been pardoned by the victim's family and his life saved only moments after being hanged, the Mehr news agency reports.

Relatives "cried out their pardon after the murderer had already been hanging for a few seconds" the agency said on Thursday, publishing a photo of people grabbing the man and holding him until they could remove the noose from around his neck.

The aborted execution took place in the northeastern city of Mashhad.

Under Iranian law, the family of a victim is entitled to pardon a criminal and save him from execution. In such cases, a murderer must pay blood money currently set at $US36,000 ($A35,575) and serve a prison sentence.